Power Rangers: Centuries
by DesmundHeatherington
Summary: Ten years after the Troobian War, Sky is acting commander of SPD Earth. One day, a new threat arrives with a vengeance.
1. Episode 101: Threat

Author's Notes:

Hello everyone! This fic has been long in the making from concept to finally being able to write it down. I plan on making it into a series, as the idea is somewhere along the lines of "if HBO did a rangers series." Please R writing this definitely took a lot and I am so excited to share it with everyone!

Episode 1.1: Threat

June 2030

Sky burst through the doors of the steakhouse and hurriedly approached the hostess. "How long has she been here?" he asked, "I hope it hasn't been too long."

"Don't worry about it Mr. Tate." she replied, "She's only been waiting for about ten minutes or so."

The hostess motioned for him to follow as she led him to a secluded table in the back of the restaurant. "I am so sorry." he said kissing the top of his wife's head before sitting down, "The meeting with the Saturn officers was a lot more extensive than I had planned. I tried telling them that I had somewhere important to be, but they just didn't manage to wrap things up-"

"It's fine, honestly." She cut him off, "Between both of our jobs, I wasn't really expecting either of us to be punctual."

Since their participation in the war against the Troobians, Sky and Syd had become almost completely consumed in their careers. As the SPD Earth base commander and the A-squad pink ranger, their hands were full even while intergalactic crime fell to its lowest rates in years. The couple was lucky to manage a marriage in the process, albeit it was more of necessity rather than romance. Worried about Syd remaining in the field, Sky requested that they establish themselves on paper for legal reasons if something should happen to either of them.

"I wanted to talk to you," she continued, "about your offer."

For the past few months, Sky had urged her to settle down a bit and take a job out of the field. He wasn't entirely keen on his wife putting her life on the line every time some otherworldly creature decided to break universal law.

"I thought you were adamant on staying?" he asked.

"I was, but now I have a reason to keep myself a little safer than normal. Sky, I went to the doctor today…" she trailed off.

"And?"

"And, I found out that we should be expecting a major change in our lives soon. We're going to have a child." She replied meekly with a smile.

Sky was speechless. "Please say something. You're worrying me here. If you don't feel we're ready it's still not too late to terminate-"

He interrupted her with a laugh. "Ready? I've been ready for the past few years!" he exclaimed, "My god, we're having a child!"

He reached for both of her hands and placed a gentle kiss on each of them. "How much longer until we meet?" he asked.

"I'm about five weeks along, so my due date is sometime around February."

"Celebrations are in order!" he declared, "I'm going to order us some wine- oh, but just for me, obviously. What would you like? You can have anything you wish, love."

"Honestly," replied Syd, "I think I can feel my cravings already. I'm feeling some chocolate cake."

xxx

"I didn't do nothing!" shouted the burly green creature as he was lead into the base's booking facility.

"Tell that to the pound of plutonian hallucinogens found in your possession," replied the ranger leading him in cuffs.

Levi Thomas was the typical red ranger type. With a strong, disciplined background of academy work and an alpha male personality, it was no surprise that Sky chose him as the leader of the newest B-squad. Aside from his traits in leadership, he also fit the physical stereotypes of his position. With his tall, toned body, chisled face and tousled dirty blond hair women at the academy often fawned over him. Not that he would normally care; he was often too busy with his work to care about something as trivial as relationships.

"I ain't going to jail today!" exclaimed the creature.

He gave Levi a strong jab to the ribs, loosening his grip enough to escape. With that, the prisoner took off down the hall, leaving startled cadets in his wake.

"Like hell you are," Levi muttered.

He began to persue the offending creature, suddenly disappearing and then reappearing before him. "Next time, try not to run from someone who can transmutate," he stated as he regained control of the prisoner.

A man with a similar, yet bulkier stature bounded down the hallway toward them. "Are you sure you've got this?" he asked.

"Fine Alex, you can help."

Alex Vega was Levi's blue ranger and second in command. A reformed Compton inner-city street thug, he was chosen for his position in order to balance Levi's rigid, type-A personality. While Levi turned down many of his hopeful pursuers, Alex was happy to take them over. He was equally handsome, but in a different way with his tanned skin, dark eyes and hair, and charming smile. "Do you know if we're ever going to do some actual ranger work?" he asked, "We've been on B-squad for months now and we're still stuck doing work inside the base."

"Well it's not like there's a ton of criminal activity," Levi replied, "A-squad is usually able to handle most missions on their own."

The pair headed back down the hallway toward the prisoner holding cells. "I do know however," he continued, "that A-squad is headed to the yearly Rangers' Summit this weekend and will be gone for a while. Commander Tate told me this morning that he'll be briefing us tonight on what duties we'll be taking over during their absence."

Alex bit his lip and nodded as they approached an empty cell. He scanned his ID and the doors slid open. "Guards will be over in a bit to allow you to contact family and an attorney if you wish," he stated as Levi shoved the creature into the cell.

xxx

"Violet, come here and give me your morpher."

B-squad green ranger Violet Carson and yellow ranger Derek Madison were currently scheduled for time in the lab. Much like her older brother, Violet was of great help to the science department in testing suspect samples and repairing weaponry. Aside from her curiosity and abilities in the lab, she also shared traits with him such as her pale skin, dark hair, and genetic power of psychometry.

Derek was a lanky young man with soft brown hair and dark eyes. He was recruited as a technical specialist who began his career as an off the grid hacker, but quickly gained entrance into the SPD academy, as he was able to hack into the system and demonstrate all major security flaws in the system. Within his first couple years, he had designed a whole new security code, as well as continuously develop updates to the morpher grid.

"Ooh! Are you done with the update?" she asked, turning from her work and taking off her lab glasses. She moved from her position at the lab bench to the tech area at the opposite side of the room.

"Yeah, we just need to give it some time to download. We can test it in the sparring chamber later tonight."

Violet reached into her pocked and took out the small mobile device, jumping as it flew out of her hand and into Derek's. "Show off. Look at me! I'm Derek and I'm telekinetic!" she mocked.

Derek gave her a smirk. "When you've got it, why not use it?" he replied. "This may take a while to download; mind if I check out what you're working on?"

"It's nothing too special," Violet replied, "I'm just finishing up the DNA testing for this one case. Just don't forget your eye protection this time."

She turned to walk back to her work, replacing her lab glasses. Derek followed, picking a stray pair from another lab station. "So what exactly is this process?" he asked.

"It's called gel electrophoresis," she replied.

"What now?"

Violet laughed, shaking her head. "Look," she said, picking up a test tube and a micropipette, "In this tube is a sample of DNA. Now I'm going to pick up some enzymes."

She dipped the micropipette into another test tube. "These get mixed with the DNA," she swirled the contents of the tube, "and then injected into the pockets in this gel."

With a fresh pipette, she picked up the contents of the tube and placed them into a small hole in a block of a gel substance. "Now I'll run electricity through this for an hour or so and it'll spread the DNA out into specific sections. If the sections match, then the samples came from the same person."

"Nothing better than an afternoon science lesson!" interrupted a tall, slim young man with shaggy light brown hair and rounded horn-rimmed glasses as he entered the lab.

"Oh hey Doctor Canfiled ," Violet replied.

Doctor Nicholas Canfiled was the newest head of lab sciences at SPD Earth. Beginning as a young prodigy in the STEM fields, he attended MIT on a scholarship and earned doctorate degrees in both mathematics and engineering, as well as a master's in physics. At the young age of thirty-four he was a prime candidate for the position after Kat left the base in pursuit of greater career options.

"Derek, I hope those aren't my goggles you're wearing again," Canfield admonished, "Last time you used them, I found them caked in spicy cheese puff dust. May I remind you that it is a safety violation to snack in the lab."

Violet let out a snort of laughter as Derek shook his head. "I swear sir! I have no idea how they got that way!" he exclaimed.

xxx

"So if you ice it twice each day and stay away from any strenuous activity for the rest of the week, you should be fine. Feel free to take any over the counter painkillers if it gives you any problems, and don't be afraid to come back if it's too much for you to handle, got it?"

Tara Austin was not only the B-squad pink ranger, but also a fifth year resident in the base's medical program. She had the typical cheery personality and beauty of a pink ranger, but she was more than her color. She turned down a track and field scholarship out of high school and instead joined a pre-med program. After completing her higher education, she continued her training with SPD, as she wished to pursue trauma surgery and emergency medicine as a specialty.

She placed a reassuring hand on the injured cadet's shoulder and smiled before picking up his chart and signing off on it. _"Make way make way!"_ hollered a few interns, bursting through the medical center doors with a gurney.

Tara hurried to the scene, pulling her short blonde hair into a messy ponytail. "What's the issue here?" she asked urgently.

"First year cadet, male, age fifteen. He and his buddy thought they were ready to try some of the heavy weaponry; more specifically, one of the large butterfly knives."

The intern pulled down the sheet covering the patient, revealing a large cut across his chest and a deep slash to his left arm. Tara inspected the damage. "The wound on his chest seems superficial; we'll just need to bandage that. However, his arm is lacerated. Nice job packing it on the scene; he could have died from blood loss on the way over here. Let's move him to a bed. Someone needs to get some morphine as well as some local anesthetic and a suture kit. Go!"

A couple of the interns scattered while the rest aided her in moving the patient on to an empty bed. "Hey there," Tara said, "Can you hear me? Can you tell me who you are?"

The cadet mumbled slightly but it was too inaudible to understand. "It's okay. You're going to be okay, you hear me?" she continued, "I'm going to fix you right up."

The interns appeared with her requested items and immediately went to work setting up a line for the morphine and prepping the patient's arm for the stitches. "Just a quick pinch," Tara said as she injected the anesthetic into the affected area.

She then opened the sterile packaging of the suture kit and began stitching the laceration back together. "He's going to have one hell of a set of scars," she commented as she finished her last few stitches.

"Alright, it's done. I'm pretty sure you all can handle the rest."

The interns nodded as she stripped off her gloves and moved on to her next patient.

xxx

It was late in the evening and Levi had called the team together to meet with their commander in order to touch base on their duties while the A-squad would be away.

"So basically," Sky explained, "your team will be the best defense Earth has in place while the A-squad is away. What this means is that your jobs are going to become much harder and much more serious. In fact, I have spoken with your supervisors in your areas of work and have requested that you spend full time under me from tomorrow up until A-squad returns."

He produced several folders from his desk drawer. "These are your schedules for your training and drills as Earth's current top squad. All sessions are mandatory."

"I'm sorry, but does this say physical training at five AM tomorrow?" Derek asked.

Sky closed his eyes and exhaled sharply. "Yes, Mr. Madison, indeed it does. You all have been asking about being 'real rangers,' whatever the hell that's supposed to mean, and this is it. 'Real rangers' understand that they are the planet's main line of defense against any threat. They take this responsibility seriously and therefore take their training seriously. Physical training, five o'clock tomorrow morning. If any of you are even a second late, there will be repercussions. Understood?"

"Yes sir," the team replied.

"Understand that while the A-squad is absent you may be the Earth's sole defenders in the case of a crisis. I don't mean to be a tight-ass, but your commitment could mean the difference between life and death for the civilians on this planet. You are all dismissed; good night."

The rangers gave him a salute and filed out of his office.

xxx

Violet yawned as she stood on the platform with Sky. Several early mornings and late nights of hard ranger training had her exhausted.

Her brother along with his team were leaving for the annual Rangers' Summit conference that day and she was there to wish them goodbye. "Don't let the planet fall into too much chaos while I'm gone," Bridge joked as she helped him load his bags into the spacecraft.

She shook her head. "Real funny Bridge," she replied, "It's not like I'm the only one in charge of keeping the place safe."

"I know. I just worry about having my baby sister being one of the lone defenders of Earth. Just please promise me that you'll be safe."

"It's not that dangerous out there anymore, thanks to you. But if it makes you feel better, then yes, I promise to keep myself in one piece."

He pulled her into a tight hug and kissed the top of her head. "Keep the good reputation of the green rangers alive," he said before letting go.

Meanwhile, Sky was saying goodbye to his wife. "Are you sure that you want to go? Technically you did already resign from your position," he pleaded.

"Sky, I told you, one last event and then I'm done," Syd replied, "It's not like I'm running into battle or anything. I'll just be speaking and networking, and peacemaking. Me and the little one will be fine."

She placed a hand on her abdomen. "Alright," her husband agreed, "Just be sure to call and message often to let me know you're okay. And if you ever need to come home, I can have someone sent out to pick you up in a heartbeat."

"I'll be fine!" she protested before he pulled her close for a quick kiss on the lips.

"Love you," said Sky.

"Love you too."

With that she boarded the spacecraft, the last passenger to do so. The doors shut as Sky and Violet went back inside the base.

xxx

Levi thought that he was dreaming when he heard the first bang, but when he woke up and the ground began to shake beneath him, he knew that something was terribly wrong. He picked up his morpher to check the time. It was 3:57 AM. There was also an alarming message from Sky: "COMMAND CENTER. NOW."

He didn't hesitate as he swung his legs off his bed and grabbed his emergency bag. Another loud bang shook the base as he checked that he had everything and bolted out of his door. "What the hell is going on?" Alex shouted as he appeared from his room across the hall.

"I don't know but it's definitely something dangerous. Did you get the commander's message?"

"Yeah. We all did. Violet, Derek, and Tara are already on their way. I wanted to make sure that you were alright too."

Suddenly, an unmistakable noise echoed through the hall: boots on the ground. "Run," Levi whispered sharply.

They sprinted down the hallway and through a security partition, which Alex promptly closed and locked. "No saying how long that's going to hold up," he said as he turned and continued to run.

When they arrived at command center, they met Sky who was standing at an opening in the floor. "I don't know how much time we have left," he said, "Hurry, get inside."

"What the hell is this?" asked Alex.

"I don't have time to answer. Just get it."

Alex slung his bag over his shoulder and began to climb down the ladder into the darkness. Levi and Sky followed, with Sky closing the opening. It was impossible to gauge just how deep the hole went, but he could tell it was reasonably deep, as they climbed for a good few minutes.

When they finally reached solid ground, Sky turned on a flashlight and shined it against a wall. He reached his fingers into a crevice and pulled, exposing a small circuit board, and then pulled his morpher out of his pocket and connected it. After a few seconds of scanning noises, he unplugged his morpher and the wall split open to a dimly lit hallway.

The hallway opened up into a great cavernous room furnished to live in. Comfortable sofas surrounded a coffee table and a rug to the right, while a large kitchen area was set up to the left. The sitting area was occupied by the rest of their team members as well as Doctor Canfield. "Oh thank God," Tara sighed and she ran into Alex and Levi's arms.

"Is everyone okay?" asked Sky.

"Yeah, just a little startled and confused," replied Levi, "What the hell is this place anyway?"

Sky scratched the back of his head, sighed, and sat on the arm of one of the sofas, facing the team.

"When I was instated as Earth Commander, I had a second base built in case of another attack. After what I had seen in that war, I knew we would have to be up for anything the universe could throw at us. We are currently one-hundred-fifty feet underground in a secured bunker. We will live down here until we discover just exactly what happened and develop a plan of action. As of now, our main priority is ensuring that all of us stay alive and safe; we could be the last defense Earth has in place."

"So you don't even know what happened either?" Alex asked.

"No. I was called up to the surveillance room on emergency just before the attack hit," Sky explained, "We only saw a large mass on the radar and then the bombs started dropping. Whatever it is, it's here to kill."

"So how long do we need to stay down here?" asked Derek.

"It depends," Canfield replied, "We don't know what went on after we secured ourselves down here. The blasts could have been nuclear, leaving toxic radiation behind, the base could be completely crumbled above us, trapping us until we find a way to dig ourselves out, the planet could be occupied for all we know. I'm currently working on developing a probe, to read the environmental conditions outside. Once we know it's safe, a few of us can venture outside and investigate. Until then, we stay here and prepare for the worst."

"Rangers, you are currently the highest ranking squad on Earth," Sky continued, "I expect us all to work full force in investigating and fixing this matter. It's important that you do this on an adequate amount of sleep. I'll show you to your rooms."

He beckoned for the team to follow him, and they followed with what little they had in tow.

xxx

Author's Notes:

If you're reading this, congrats! You reached the end of this hellishly long chapter! I promise all chapters won't be this hefty, it's just that I felt this one needed to be in order to set up the story and introduce a majority of the OCs. I will try to update as much as possible and hopefully at least have a majority of the chapters for this series typed up since I am starting university in a few days. Thank you for the support! -Desmund


	2. Episode 102: Aftershock

A/N: I apologize for the small hiatus. I have moved to university and wanted to spend my first term without the distraction of updating this fic. Furthermore, once I actually began finishing chapters, I soon found out that my residence hall internet connection is an absolute asshole when it comes to uploading stories. This means that unfortunately, I cannot upload new chapters unless I am back home, so the updating schedule will be a bit sporadic. I will try to do as many chapters as I can and upload them all whenever I am at home so that you all will have a good few chapters to keep you busy while I am at school.

This chapter, I introduce a new element: chapter playlists. The ending author's notes will contain a list of titles and links to tracks that I find fitting to certain scenes within the chapter. Don't be afraid to mention your own suggestions if you have any! Reader participation is great!

Finally, (I know, such long author's notes) before I begin I would like to take a moment to thank the follows and the favorites. Your support is much appreciated. Thank you for being so patient while I update.

Hope you enjoy.

xDesmund

Episode 1.2: Aftershock

It had been a late night in the lab and Nick was more than ready for bed. Preparations to investigate above ground were in full swing and he had been spending extra time in the lab ensuring that all equipment was in order. He peeled off his lab coat and placed it on the hanging rack next to the door before turning off the lights. As he was about to head back to his room, he heard a faint shuffling from the direction of the common room. He made his way down the hall to investigate.

Violet was sitting on the large sectional in the middle of the room, reading a book on her data pad. "Violet?" he asked, "It's late, what are you doing up?"

She turned around at the sound of his voice. "I'm sorry," she replied, "I was just getting a drink of water and then I was headed back to bed."

"You don't have a glass with you," he moved towards her, speaking smoothly, "and you're still in your clothes from earlier today. I would say you haven't been sleeping."

"You're right. I think I just got caught up in my book. I'm off to bed now. See you in the morning?"

She closed the cover on her data pad and stood up from the couch. As she moved to pass Nick, he grabbed her wrist "How long has it been?" he asked.

"Since what?"

"Since you've slept. I know this isn't your first all nighter since we've been down here."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Violet jerked her wrist out of his grip and continued on her way to her room. Just as she was about to reach the hallway, he caught her and spun her around so they were face to face. He protectively braced his arms against the wall around her so she could not leave him again. "It's been months Violet, and you're trying to act like everything is normal. Key word is trying."

" _I'm not acting like anything,"_ she protested, trying to break free from him.

"You just recently lost everything in the invasion and that may or may not include your own brother, yet you haven't mentioned a thing about it. People need to talk about these things, not hide them."

"I have talked about them; with Commander Tate."

"Bullshit. He's been asking me if you've said anything. This isn't healthy. Sooner or later you're going to have to open up to someone."

She averted her eyes, the soft brown irises disappearing beneath a full set of lashes. "I… I truly am fine," she managed to choke out before breaking into a fit of sobs.

Nick removed his hands from their position on the wall and began to use them to rub soothing circles on her back, cradling her in his arms and resting his chin on the top of her head. "I think you're exhausted," he said, "Come, on, let's get you to bed."

He took her hand and led her down the hallway to her green door. "Are you going to be okay?" he asked.

She nodded in response. "Thank you," she said softly, giving him a weak smile.

He pressed a small kiss to the top of her head. "Any time," he replied.

Violet reached her hand along the wall behind her until it found a button. She pressed it and the green door slid open. "Goodnight Nick," she said as she stepped backward inside.

xxx

"Are you sure we have everything we need?" Canfield asked.

"Yep. Double and triple checked. I think we're ready to go."

It was midmorning and Violet and Dr. Canfield were about to go above ground. They were standing at the base of the tall stretch of iron ladder that led to the exit hatch. Soon they would be out in the world for the first time in a month.

Canfield nodded and grasped one of the rungs and began the climb. Violet followed. It wasn't long until they reached the heavy metal door that separated them from the outside world. He spun the latch and pushed up. Suddenly, the passage was filled with a blinding light. Sunlight. They both shielded their eyes as they continued up and out of the base.

Initially, everything looked pale and bright, as their eyes had not seen sun in a while. But slowly, they began to adjust. They were standing amidst a pile of rubble, remains from the old base. The wasteland extended for what appeared to be less than a square mile. Faintly in the distance, they could make out a fence surrounding the area. "It looks as though we're off limits," Canfield commented, "Well, let's get to work."

He hoisted his bag over his shoulder and began to make his way around the ruins. Violet stripped off her glove and waved her arm, green light emitting in its trail. "No signs of recent activity," she said, "This place is pretty barren. I think I'll try to climb up to see if I can get a view of the city."

"Be careful up there," Canfield warned, "There still could be some live ammunition trapped in some places that's left over from the bombing."

Violet tossed her bag on to a large broken piece of concrete and climbed up to it. "Page me if you find anything," she said, holding up her morpher. "And remember to look for some shrapnel. I know Alex wanted to look into it and try to find some evidence on what kind of bombs we were hit with. It could give us some insight to what we're up against."

She picked up her bag and headed further up the pile of ruins, picking up any seemingly useful fragments that she came across. After about ten minutes or so, the city was in her sights. She pulled a pair of goggles from her bag and looked towards it. It was far from the advanced state it was prior to the attack, but she could definitely see some sort of movement. Maybe there were survivors, or perhaps the area had been occupied by the attackers. Either way, it appeared to be something worth investigating. For good measure, she pulled one of her gloves off and swiped her hand over the distance. Sure enough, there were energy forms consistent with life. "Hey Nick!" she yelled, "I think the city survived!"

Suddenly, she heard a violent blast. The ground shook beneath her for a moment. Quickly, her eyes snapped away fro the city and towards the disturbance. She scanned the horizon for any foreign bodies but found nothing.

 _Nick._

She grabbed her bag and sprinted towards the edge of the ruins, peering down to find dust and black smoke rising from the area where Canfield was when she left. She slid down the rock and ran toward the scene. Canfield was lying beneath some debris, unconscious.

"Damn you!" she exclaimed as she began to lift the layers of rock and concrete off his body, "Why can't you follow your own advice?"

As she removed more of the rubble, she began to see how extensive the damage was. A large, jagged piece of shrapnel protruded from his abdomen. There was evidence of multiple crush injuries throughout his body. The worse came when she finally managed to free his left arm, or what was left of it. The instant the pressure of the rock was removed, the mangled mess of his lower arm began to gush blood. Violet swiftly undid her belt and pulled the loop tightly around the remaining limb to form a tourniquet. When he appeared somewhat stable, she retrieved her morpher to call for help.

"Alex!" she said, when the blue ranger answered, "Listen to me, you need to get up here and fast. There's been an accident."

"How? Have you been found? What's happening?"

"Canfield accidentally set off a live mine. God, Alex, it's bad. You need to hurry."

"On it."

She flipped her morpher closed and returned it to her jacket pocket. "You're going to be fine," she said, holding Nick's face in her small hands.

The sound of a small _whoosh_ turned Violet's attention from her friend's mangled body. Alex had come for them.

"If I can pick him up, I'll be able to trans mutate both of us directly inside," he said, "I'll come back for you as soon as I get him to Tara."

He reached his strong arms under Nick's slender body and pulled him up to his chest. "It'll only be a minute, possibly less," he reassured Violet.

"Just promise you'll take good care of him."

"You know I will."

Just as quickly as he arrived, he disappeared, leaving Violet alone.

xxx

"Jesus what happened to him?" Tara exclaimed when Alex appeared in the medical wing with Canfield.

"Violet said that there were still some live mines out there from the invasion. Apparently he accidentally set one off.

Tara swiftly moved around the trauma table assessing the damage. "He's barely breathing," she said, taking her stethoscope out of her ears, "Blood pressure is likely dropping by the second, and I'm pretty sure he has multiple broken ribs."

"And what do you suggest we do about this?" Alex lifted his mangled arm.

"I need to take him into surgery. Call Derek, he's assisted me before, then go get Violet. We need to be sure she's not hurt too."

Alex nodded and left the room, calling for the yellow ranger. After giving his colleague the orders, he took a running start and suddenly appeared back outside. Violet was repacking her bags. "Tara is taking him into surgery with Derek right now," he said, "Let's get you back home."

Violet nodded and took his hand and before she knew it, she was back inside.

"Violet! Are you hurt?"

Sky was suddenly at her side, checking for any visible signs of injury. "There's a lot of blood on you. Did you get cut?" he asked.

"It's.. it's not mine," she replied, swatting his hands away, "I'm fine, I just need to get cleaned up. How is he?"

"We won't know for a while," Alex replied, "They're working on him now, but the damage is pretty extensive. Even though they just called Levi in there to help, there's still only three of them and multiple procedures to perform."

"You should get cleaned up," Sky interjected.

"I will take a shower when I know he's okay," Violet snapped back.

Sky stepped forward and put his hands on her shoulders. "You know there's nothing more you can do for him now. You'll feel better without the dirt and the… blood. Go clean up. It's an order. Alex, go make sure she does so."

Alex nodded at the commander and grabbed Violet's arm leading her away.

Hours later, Violet was sitting against the wall outside the trauma room. Her long hair fell down her back, still freshly damp from her shower. She turned to the sound of the door opening. Tara emerged, pulling her surgical mask from her face. Violet sprang to her feet in hopes of hearing some sort of news. "He's alive," said Tara, "Levi and Derek have taken him to the recovery room."

The green ranger exhaled sharply and took off down the hallway, with Tara following. Once she reached the doors to the recovery room, she burst inside.

Nick was lying on the bed, still unconscious and now connected to various machines and intravenous medications. Levi and Derek were at his bedside ensuring that everything was properly connected. "He's stable for now," Tara said behind her, "But there may be future complications. We'll monitor him and do as much as we can."

Violet nodded and made her way to one of the armchairs by the bedside. She sat down and tucked her feet under herself, not taking her eyes off of Nick. "He's going to need someone to take care of the lab while he gets better," she commented, "I'll do it."

A spell of silence took over the room.

"You can leave us be now," she finally turned to face her fellow rangers.

The trio found it best to listen to their friend and quietly left the room.

xxx

"So our goal is to remain as unseen as possible," said Levi, "and if someone asks about us?"

"We're nomads," Tara continued, "Just passing through for something to eat and then we'll be on our way."

It had been three days since Canfield and Violet went above ground. Now, Levi, Tara, and Derek were planning to venture into the city.

"What do you have, Derek?" Levi asked.

Derek reached into his pocket and pulled out a few small black metal objects. "These," he explained, "are nearly undetectable bugs and wire taps. I'll place these around and see if I can get any sort of information on what exactly has happened since the attack."

"Nearly undetectable?" asked Tara.

"I say nearly because they can be found," Derek replied, "but only if you're specifically looking for them. Otherwise, they're pretty hard to catch."

"And then what do we do once they're in place?"

"We wait," Levi answered, "and see if it's safe for us out there."

He heaved his large backpack over his shoulder. "Ready for this?" he asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be," Tara replied.

The group made their way to the exit hatch and cracked it open to reveal the same bright daylight that Violet and Nick had encountered three days before.

The outside world was a wasteland, just as Violet and Alex described, with the city visible in the horizon. When they reached the fence, Derek produced a pair of bolt cutters and clipped through the chain link giving the team a small space to fit though. Once outside the fence, it was about a thirty-minute walk into the metropolis.

When the reached the towering buildings, each of the rangers put up the hoods on their cloaks in an attempt of anonymity. The surrounding environment changed drastically since they had taken to living underground. Structures were left unkempt and citizens had taken to living and working on the streets. The group maneuvered around multiple vendors asking for sales.

"I have working hard drives!" one proudly proclaimed, holding the product up to Levi, "Thirty credits each!"

"I'm sorry sir, but we're just passing through," he replied, "Is there anywhere we could get a drink? We're quite thirsty from traveling."

"Yes, yes," the vendor replied, nodding, "Just down this alley here. Plenty to eat and drink and good prices."

Levi thanked the man and motioned for Tara and Derek to follow.

The establishment was a small, dimly lit tavern that had been set up in what seemed to be an old fast food joint. The bar was fashioned out of what used to be the ordering counter. Old screens with makeshift wiring were hung on the walls, just as if it were a traditional sport bar, however they only showed static. A few patrons sat at the bar, sipping various cocktails, while a few more were settled in booths feasting on dinner platters. A tall, slender woman with inky black hair stood behind the bar serving customers. "I'll distract the employee," said Levi, "Derek, do you think you could tap the monitors? They may be used to broadcast."

"Sure thing," Derek replied, "I'll also go around the building and place some bugs. The roof might also have some receivers I can work on."

"I'll help him," Tara added.

Levi nodded and turned to make his way to the bar. When he sat down, the woman approached him. "What can I do you for?" she asked, "Strange, I haven't seen you around here."

"I'm just passing through," he explained, "I've been wandering ever since the invasion. I'll have a gin and coke, thank you. The name's Thomas."

"Well hello Thomas, I'm Camilla. That gin and coke will be ready in just a minute."

She turned to search the bar's liquor stock and plucked a bottle from the top shelf. Then she reached into the cooler below and pulled out a can. "Ice?" she asked, as she put a short glass on the bar.

"Sure."

She dropped two large cubes of ice into the glass and poured the soda over it with a bit of gin. "Do you know if there's anywhere else better off than here?" he asked, "That's what me and my friends have been up to; trying to find someplace that's a bit more livable."

"I'm not sure," Camilla replied, "I haven't left here since."

"And do you know who did this?"

He turned his head slightly to catch a glimpse of Derek, who had just finished clipping a transmission bug to one of the television wires. The yellow ranger gave him a thumbs up and headed outside to investigate the rest of the building.

"You haven't seen? The occupiers broadcast almost daily, through the screens."

She motioned to the static screens across the tavern. "All places have them, it's required."

Levi hummed to himself and took a drink. "I guess I've never noticed before. I don't really stay in one place for long.

He gave her a half smile.

"Well Thomas, if you happen to stay in this place for a bit longer, I would like to see you again," she replied, "I get off at nine every night if you're interested."

She leaned her elbows on the bar in front of him, resting her head on her hands so that they were at eye level. She was pretty, with light green eyes and pale freckles dusting her nose. Levi leaned closer to her. "And if I take you up on this offer, will my drink be on the house?" he asked.

"Funny boy," she replied, lightly tapping his nose, "Sure, but that means you owe me one when you take me out."

"I may just have to."

He took one last swig from his glass and pushed the empty cup to Camilla fro across the bar. "I think it's time that I caught up with my friends. I will definitely take you up on your offer though."

He stood up and headed out the door. Once outside, he saw Tara stading next to the door. "Well that was interesting to say the least," she mused, "I never knew you were the type to flirt your way into getting a free drink."

Levi shrugged, "I wasn't necessarily doing it for the drink."

"Well she was cute from what I could see," she replied, "Derek is on the roof. He said there were some receivers he could place some bugs on. He should be down any minute."

Sure enough, Derek's slim figure was seen swinging down the side of the building, using his scaling kit for support. When he was within a few feet of the ground, he dropped next to his fellow rangers. "System is go!" he announced proudly.

"Good," Levi replied, "It's time we got home."

"So, is 'Thomas' really going to take up that girl's offer for a date?" Tara joked as they ventured down the alleyway.

Levi rolled his eyes and Derek laughed. Before he could respond, he noticed that something wasn't quite right. "I think we've gone the wrong way," he said.

Sure enough, they were not in the outer city marketplace that they had entered though. Instead, the streets became narrower and they alleyways darker. Soon, they reached a fence visible at the end of a particularly dreary alley. The group cautiously approached the fence, being careful to stay in the shadows, and observed what was beyond.

Inside the fence was some sort of courtyard, surrounded by the grey, dilapidated remains of old city buildings. It was quiet and empty, appearing as if not a single soul resided there, however a pair of masked soldiers dressed in black armor interrupted the still in the air. One produced a radio and spoke clearly though it. _"This is your afternoon inspection. Come outside."_

Doors began to open and groups of humans as well as other species from throughout the galaxy made their way into the open. They made clean and orderly lines before the soldiers, who began to count and verify each being's identity on the data pads they carried. "SPD will eventually stop this madness!" one man called from the back of the line, "Believe me, they're still out there! One day they'll come!"

The soldiers looked amongst each other. The one on the right produced a baton from his belt and made his way toward the man while the other made a call from the headset on his helmet. The rangers heard a sharp _crack_ and saw the man fall to the ground, groaning in pain. Then, a group of similarly dressed soldiers took him away.

"What is this?" asked Derek.

"I don't know, but it sure as hell isn't good," Levi replied.

xxx

Violet was eating her lunch and reading more of her book when she heard Nick stir beside her. She looked up from her data pad to see his eyes twitch and then softly flutter open. "You're awake," she breathed.

In an instant she was on her feet and standing above him. "You're awake," she repeated, smoothing his hair away from his face.

"Yep," he replied weakly, "Moving live ammunition, not something I recommend."

Violet choked out a laugh and gently reached her arms around him. "You had me-us so worried."

"There was no need to worry. How have things been since I've been out? How long has it been?" He winced as he shifted in his bed, obviously now feeling the pain.

She didn't know where to start. "Well, it's been three days," she began, "You broke some ribs and had some serious internal injuries, and then there's…"

"What?"

"Your arm. There was nothing we could do…" tears began to well up in her eyes.

Nick tried to lift his left arm in front of his face, but nothing came into view. He looked down and saw nothing past his elbow, just a bandaged stump. "It's… gone," he said.

"It was either blown off in the explosion or crushed by the debris. We were unable to salvage enough to repair it."

"How am I supposed to go back to work with only one hand?"

Violet could tell that he was alarmed.

"We can work on it, you and me, together. I promise, things will be okay."

"Okay? My arm is missing!" Nick bit his lip in frustration.

Tara warned her that he would be in major shock when he woke up. Experiencing it, however, was much harder than she imagined. She sighed and sat on the foot of his bed, crossing her legs.

"Nick, it's okay to be emotional," she reached her hand out and touched one of his legs, gently stroking it, "Just know that I'm here for you, just like you were here for me."

He seemed to relax a little. "I've been taking care of the lab while you've been gone," she continued, "I can get you some lunch and we can go over it if you like."

Nick nodded at her. "I promise," she said before she left the room, "I can get you through this."

xxx

The trio of rangers arrived back at the base hours after they had left. After witnessing the events beyond the fence, Derek managed to start the GPS system on his morpher and was able to find directions back to the base. When the finished the descent from the exit hatch they encountered a curious commander.

"I presume you found something?" Sky asked.

"Oh we found many things," Levi replied.

Derek handed Sky his data pad. "I managed to drop a few bugs and wire taps at a local tavern," he said, "These should connect us to whatever is going on up there. Apparently the new occupying forces broadcast at least once a day. As long as they're unaware of our new intelligence, we could have an advantage over them."

Sky inspected his work. "Good," he commented, "Anything else of major importance?"

"Yes," said Levi, "On our way back we encountered something rather peculiar."

Sky raised an eyebrow, interested. "Continue."

"It seems as if the occupying forces have established some form of camp. We were only able to see a small part of it, but it looks as if they're rounding up certain people and holding them prisoner. It definitely appears to be something worth looking in to."

"Interesting. Is that all?"

"Yes sir."

"Well, you three may retire for the night unless there is some sort of major emergency. Good work today."

The three rangers gave him a salute and left to their rooms.

"Oh damn you!" Violet exclaimed, " _Quickly?_ And over a triple word?"

It had been a few hours since Nick had awoken and he was feeling much better. So much better, in fact, that he had requested a game of Scrabble.

He laughed and shrugged. "Don't complain, you're just angry that I'm destroying your winning streak."

Violet pursed her lips and examined her group of letters, trying to determine her next power play. Suddenly, Alex burst into the room. "The occupiers," he said, "we've found them! They're doing their nightly broadcast now!"

He handed her his data pad. The figure on the center of the screen looked surprisingly human. He was wearing some sort of intergalactic military uniform and was sitting behind a dark wooded desk. His dark blond hair was parted slightly to the right and was smoothed to his head. He stared into the screen with a pair of cold blue eyes.

"Good evening," he said. His voice was level and steady in an unsettling way.

"The first announcement this evening will be that the curfew has been pushed up from ten o'clock in the evening to nine," he continued, "Any violators will be arrested and await sentencing from their area officer. Possible punishment could include the camps."

Meanwhile, Sky watched in his office with Levi by his side.

"It has also come to my attention that there are still rumors afloat that 'Space Patrol Delta' will somehow put a stop to this reign. I assure you that these rumors are absolutely preposterous and that they should not be taken seriously. Anyone found to be spreading these rumors will be properly punished. This has been the end of the SPD era, and you should start accepting it."

"Have you seen him before?" Levi asked.

"Yes," Sky replied, "He's a Troobian. They're back."

A/N: Thank you so much for reading! Any follows, favorites, and/or reviews are greatly appreciated.

Yes, this is a very Violet/Nick centric chapter. Don't worry, most, if not all, characters will get their own chapters to shine (:

CHAPTER PLAYLIST:

Intro/Story Theme:

Centuries – Fall Out Boy

watch?v=dZEnQogAd8U


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